Türkiye is preparing to build third nuclear power plant in Thrace: Energy Min.

Türkiye has started working on its third nuclear power plant in the northwest Thrace region to meet the country’s increasing energy demand, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Donmez said on Tuesday.

Donmez emphasized the growing importance of nuclear energy as a clean energy source during a live broadcast on the TRT Haber television channel.

He explained that construction of four reactors for the country's first nuclear plant, Akkuyu in Mersin on the Mediterranean coast, is currently underway, with the first reactor expected to start up around the end of the year, followed by the rest every other year.

The second plant will be constructed in Sinop and works are ongoing to determine the precise location of the third plant in the Thrace region.

Türkiye has distinctive advantage as energy hub

Donmez stated that the country's strategic central location, surrounded by 15 energy-producing and -consuming countries, gives it an advantage over other energy hubs, a fact that is being widely recognized not only by Türkiye but by several countries.

Although the minister said Türkiye imports almost 40% of its natural gas from Russia, it is not only reliant on Russia for its planned role as an energy hub.

The country also hopes to become a natural gas producer once the Black Sea natural gas discovery is included in the power system.

Türkiye also imports natural gas from Azerbaijan and Iran, and is quite flexible in terms of LNG imports from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Oman in the Gulf region, Egypt and Algeria in the Mediterranean region, as well as the United States and Nigeria, according to Donmez, who added that the country has additional plans for imports from Iraq, Libya, and Israel.